I opened my eyes. He pointed at a gorgeous chocolate-brown suit. The smooth, rich color was unconventional, but striking.
Jade nodded at my head. "It looks good with your human hair," he explained. "And the unusual colour will help viewers remember you."
"I don't need viewers to remember me," I said half-heartedly.
"You're right. The whole point of this is to find a mate, not become a TV icon." Jade smiled. "But reminding people—shifters and humans—that dragons exist is a good thing."
I grimaced but didn't argue with him. As we faded from public consciousness, our magic grew weaker. We were still highly powerful magical beings, of course, but we didn't strike fear and awe in people like we once did. Now we were too often relegated to fairy tales or myths.
A sudden uneasiness hit me. What if nobody applied to be on the show because they didn't believe dragons were real?
I shook the thought from my head. What foolishness. As if I actually cared about this Dragonfate Games nonsense…
I took the rich brown suit carefully from the rack and examined it in front of the full-length mirror. My reflection was crystal-clear, since our housekeeper shined the mirror to perfection.
"It looks great on you," Jade commented.
He was right. The smooth color of the suit worked well with the natural red streak in my otherwise black hair. I'd be offended if the omegasdidn'tfind me attractive.
Not that I cared. Because I wasn't going to pick any of them to be my mate. This was all for my brothers' sakes. Nothing more.
After getting dressed, Jade took me to the pier by the beach. My stomach twisted when I saw the film crew already set up. My brothers—except Viol—were all present. Judging by their impatient faces, I'd kept them waiting.
"Finally," Aurum said with a groan. "What took you so long? All this equipment is melting under the sun."
"Be nice to your older brother," Jade chided him gently. "It's tough to be the first dragon ever on TV. Right, Crimson?"
"I suppose," I mumbled.
The director clapped his hands. "Places, everyone. Let's get ready to shoot this commercial."
Everybody rushed around. My brothers and the staff all had tasks. Meanwhile, I stood there like a dressed-up doll with nothing to do.
I glanced over at a nearby table with papers on it. It seemed to be information about the show.
As the sea breeze fluttered, the papers rustled. Something caught my eye. There were multiple photographs of human faces.
No, not humans. Shifters.
They were the first contestants of the Dragonfate Games.
Curious, I edged closer to the table. The photographs were half-hidden beneath a paperweight.
I got the feeling I wasn't supposed to be looking at them. But seeing as I had no intention of actually falling in love with any of the contestants, did it really matter?
Still, it felt a bit naughty to be looking at them. I glanced up to where the staff and my brothers ran around dealing with the commercial. None of them paid me any attention.
What was a bored dragon to do?
I nudged the paperweight aside. Now I could get a good look at all the photos. I idly flipped through them like magazines in a waiting room. Every photo was accompanied by a description of the omega's name and shifter species. None of them caught my eye, obviously. They were all decently attractive men, sure, but it was laughable to think I'd ever fall in love with any of them. A man who'd participate in a reality TV dating show like this wassonot my type.
Yawning, I flipped through to the last page.
I froze.
At the very bottom of the page was the last contestant. His photo made my heart skip a beat.
And thatneverhappened to me.
